1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to integrated circuit devices, and more specifically to enhancing a signal on a long line or distributed line within the integrated circuit.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In the drive to increase miniaturization on integrated circuits, signal lines are made longer and thinner. This change in signal line geometry has increased the resistance and capacitance on these signal lines. This increase in resistance and capacitance results in the slowing down and degradation of signals sent on the lines. Consequently, sending a signal from one end of the chip to the other has become a limitation on the performance of the circuits.
To improve the signals sent on long or distributed lines in an integrated circuit, a series of inverters are typically added at the midpoint of the line. These series of inverters are known in the art as repeaters. The use of repeaters generally results in reducing the degradation of a signal sent on a long or a distributed line. The repeaters, however, also have the undesirable affect of significantly delaying the signal.
Therefore, it would be desirable to provide a method for eliminating the degradation of a signal sent on a long or a distributed line, without significantly delaying the signal.